


A Fateful, Fatal Attraction

by TheSnowyOwl



Category: Vampire Knight (Anime & Manga)
Genre: F/M, Karia (Kaito x Maria)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-23
Updated: 2017-06-23
Packaged: 2019-11-08 16:47:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17984906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSnowyOwl/pseuds/TheSnowyOwl





	1. She Pissed Him Off

She really pissed him off.

He lead a simple life before she came along. He ate, slept and hunted. That’s all that mattered then and all that should matter now. To him, vampires were vermin of the Earth and the more he could get rid of, the better. If it wasn’t for his history with Zero, he’d surely hate him too. 

Yet she always kept coming back. This strange lamb with the blood of a wolf would kneel patiently at his side under the trees, clutching an open parasol even in the comfort of the shade. 

Maria Kurenai. That was her name. 

Just as he suspected, she was waiting under the same tree, her parasol open to keep her as shaded as possible. Today, she was looking particularly pale. He realised that she must have forced herself out just to see him, but quickly brushed off any sentiment that thought brought him. 

“You again.” He said gruffly, sitting himself down a safe distance from her.

She regarded him with those curious lavender eyes. It reminded him of Zero. No, she was beneath the likings of him. She acted as a puppet for that woman to torture Zero, and he wasn’t about to forget that. 

“Has your day been busy?” Her tone was soft, almost dreamlike.

He frowned. 

“What’s it to you?” 

“Well, you’re later than usual.” 

He felt her eyes on him, but refused to meet her gaze. 

“I don’t understand why you keep coming back here.”

A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves.

“I want to be stronger.” 

Kaito finally met her gaze properly for the first time. Though she tried not to give anything away, he could see the pain and sincerity in her features. 

“My kind fear you, they say you’re more ruthless than a lot of hunters, your ties to Zero only make us more wary.” She continued, keeping her eyes on him.

“So you fear me?” He asked, feigning arrogance. 

“Maybe, I don’t know. But, since you caught me that day, I think I felt some understanding. That’s why I want to be strong, so I can face you, the scary hunter, like this each day.” 

He remembered the event well, though he’d try to push it to the back of his mind. Maria was on her way to find Zero, she seemed to have a crush on him - something she’d later needlessly told him was misplaced because of Ichiru. She’d gotten so far, but the sunshine beat down heavily that day, and she was on the verge of collapse. Kaito was there to catch her before she came tumbling into a heap on the ground. 

Maria seemed to pick up on his expression as it became thoughtful, and she smiled gently. Kaito came out of his thoughts to that smile, but didn’t return it. Instead, he stood up.

“Are you going so soon?” The sadness in her voice was evident.

“You shouldn’t be trying to associate with someone like me, vampire.” He stated coldly, turning his back to her.

She cast her gaze downward to the grass.

“Then, I suppose I’ll save my strength. Forgive me for intruding for all this time.” 

His expression hardened. He forced himself to focus on the hatred coursing through his veins, though his mind was speaking in what seemed like another language to his heart. Briskly, he walked away, leaving her alone beneath the tree.

Kaito didn’t see her again since. The days rolled into weeks, yet she kept to her word and was never waiting underneath the tree. On the outside he remained aloof and cold, though perhaps a bit more reckless than usual. On the inside, though, was a conflict completely foreign to him. 

There was gossip fluttering around the place that finally reached Kaito’s ears on one cooler morning than usual. Though he remained indifferent about it, his thoughts bothered him. It seemed that Maria Kurenai had finally found a suitor, not of her own choice of course. Vampires always had a medieval way of doing things, just another thing he hated about them. 

It came as a surprise to him that on that same evening, after an incredibly long and late shift, the familiar petite girl was waiting underneath the tree. She didn’t have her parasol open, and her expression seemed distant and sad. The reaction of his body when he saw her, particularly his heart, frightened him. 

He approached her casually but coldly all the same, his expression likened to that of a stone. She gazed up at him and softened immediately. He could have sworn that in that moment she had tears pricking in the corners of her eyes, though he did his best not to notice. 

Despite himself, Kaito found himself kneeling down before the vampire, coming face to face with her. She visibly took comfort in this, as her shoulders relaxed ever so slightly. 

“You must have heard the news, right?” Her voice was meek, she clearly hadn’t been quite well recently. 

He nodded simply, not giving anything away.

Maria smiled, but her smile wasn’t dreamlike or gentle. It was a smile of loneliness, of fear.

“I know that we parted those weeks ago…but I never got to say goodbye to you properly.”

Kaito just couldn’t wrap his head around it, what had this girl so attached?

“The truth is that I’d watched you from afar for some time. You were always so strong and ruthless, but…you were also lonely.”

He grit his teeth at that.

“I thought, in that moment, that even though we’d never be equals and you’d never see me past the creature I am…I could learn to be strong from you. I only wish you didn’t have to meet me in such an embarrassing way” 

Another piece slid into place in Kaito’s mind. Was Maria really looking for Zero that day, or was she looking for him?

“The truth is…” she trailed off, tearing her eyes away.

He waited with a patience he never knew he had, his heart racing in his chest. Maria took a breath and met his eyes with her own.

“The truth is I’m lonely, too.” 

The tears in her eyes were clear to see now, her cheeks flushed scarlet. Kaito was taken aback by this strange, otherworldly girl knelt before him. It was one of the few times he had ever laid eyes on a vampire riddled with a sincerity that made them almost…human.

“Do you want to marry this man?” He asked quietly after a while, letting go of the breath he didn’t realise he was holding.

“I have not much of a choice.” She replied honestly, her voice as quiet as his. 

The two gazed at each other in silence, taking in each feature of their faces as the setting sunlight glowed against their bodies. Something maddening inside him persuaded him to move without realising, closing the gap between them.

He kissed her just as the sun melted and the night drank the light away. Her lips were a tender velvet, her hair silk against his fingers.

She really pissed him off.


	2. He Made Her Smile

He made her smile. 

She wished she could express these sincere feelings to him, but he was in no position to cope with them, let alone accept them. Whenever he looked at her he saw the kind eyes of Zero, but the sickly demeanour of Ichiru. Yes, she and Ichiru were alike. That’s probably why she loved him the way she did. 

Since that frantic, fevered evening that seemed to come from nothing at all, everything was different. They realised meeting under that tree was risky business, so they’d meet anywhere but there. It didn’t seem to matter to him whether she was pinned against the wall in an alley in broad daylight, or laid out across a desk in an empty classroom late at night.

Though things didn’t turn out the way Maria thought it would, and it went against all of her sensibilities as a lady and as a vampire, there was a thrill she couldn’t deny. For the first time, someone was hungry for her, and that someone was the least expected person at all. She, Maria Kurenai, had hold of Kaito Takamiya, the fearsome hunter who loathed all vampires. 

There was only so much sneaking around she could do, though. The people around her were starting to catch on to her unusual activity. Although they expressed concern at her health, Maria knew that they were ultimately worried about a scandal. It would not look good at all, not now that the sickly girl was finally matched.

Ultimately, though it was harder than she ever thought it’d be, Maria set off as the sun was setting outside. She was hoping to catch Kaito on his way home, she was hoping to talk to him. Duty needed to come first, she knew that. So, she had to call things off. 

It was alarming when she could smell blood in the air after she stepped out of the carriage. Worse still, it was blood that made her fangs throb and her heart race. With little regard for her own health, Maria bounded after the scent trail, her mind filled with all sorts of thoughts and fears. It lead her to a small, broken house with cracked windows and a door left slightly ajar. 

Cautiously, Maria approached the door, taking gentle steps as she did so. With careful hands, she pushed the door open a bit further and stepped inside. The smell was strong here. The fear inside was undeniable at that point, but she refused to let it show on her face. 

“Kaito?” She called out into the space, her voice softer than she’d have liked. 

“I’m in here.” His voice replied from a distance away. 

Maria felt dizzier and dizzier as she practically ran to the source of his voice. He was sat on an uncomfortable looking cot, his shirt off and bandages around his chest. She tried to slow to a stop but her legs gave out beneath her and she fell to her knees in front of him, breathing heavily through coughs. 

“Maria.”

She couldn’t stop coughing, the tears welling up in her eyes. What had she just been thinking now? What did she expect to have found? 

“Maria!”

Firm hands clasped on her shoulders and shook her slightly, forcing her to snap out of the daze and look up at the injured man. 

 “Did you run all the way here? Is the scent…that strong for you?” 

No. This wasn’t her wish. He wasn’t supposed to find out about her feelings in this way, these feelings not even she would address. Tears spilled from her eyes as she waited for an expression of disgust, a snarl or a shove. Nothing of that sort came. 

Instead, Kaito pulled Maria with ease off the floor and onto his lap so that she straddled him. She gasped as his arms wrapped tightly around her waist, keeping her in place. Without a word, he rested his head on her shoulder and closed his eyes. 

“Kaito…”

“Hush, for just a while, let’s just be quiet like this.” 

Hesitantly, Maria moved her hands up his arms. Her fingers soon found themselves tangled in his hair, and she inhaled his scent deeply, closing her eyes. She could hear his heart beating, it was erratic, as though he was afraid in that moment, too. 

“Your heart is racing…” She heard herself whisper. 

Kaito seemed to freeze for a moment, considering his next move. Then, before she knew it, his mouth was on hers. She came to understand in that moment that it didn’t matter where and it didn’t matter how, she would give nothing more than to be with him. He was the only one she wanted, to see her writhing beneath him, to hold her at her most vulnerable point. 

And as she lay curled up in his arms, the sheets draped lazily over their naked forms, she felt his heart against her palm. It was the calmest she’d ever heard it.

He made her smile.


	3. He Hadn't Seen Her

He hadn’t seen her for two months. 

Ever since that night together, she was nowhere to be found. Worse still, there were no whispers of gossip about her or her family. He was troubled, but he refused to go to Zero about it. Instead he simmered in worry and, over time, anger. He wondered if he’d been played by this beautiful vampire, if it was karma for letting his guard down. The thoughts were echoed in each punch carved into the wall during long and lonely nights. 

His nerve was getting the better of him, and the tether was getting shorter and shorter. It was distracting him from his work, making him look a fool in situations where he usually excelled. Just what was that infuriating girl playing at? 

A file was slammed down onto his desk one morning, and he finally got a semblance of an answer. It was a file on Maria. 

“It’s quite a pitiful case, really.” His colleague mused absently. 

Kaito lifted the file with reluctant fingers. The sight of her face in a picture made his heart ache. He frowned.

“Is she on the list?” He asked gruffly, refusing to look at his colleague. 

“Unfortunately for you, not quite yet. It seems she’s holed herself up in her room and has become rather…well, out of control. Yesterday she tried to attack someone who attempted to enter by climbing a tree to her window. They say she’s got this vicious look.”

His frown deepened. His colleague picked up on this.

“I know, I know. But we can’t kill a noble vampire right now. We certainly can cage her up though, so she wont be a danger to anyone else. I just wonder what’s got this girl crazy like that. I heard she was quite a quiet, sickly type.” 

Kaito stood up, opened the drawer of his desk and shoved the file inside.

“I’ll go and make the arrest.” 

“We have a team, they’re almost ready to go-”

“No. There’s no need for that.”

“Kaito, what are you going to do?” 

He looked at the colleague, who seemed puzzled and a little frightened. 

“Bringing multiple people is not necessary. We don’t need a fuss. She’s a sickly girl, as you said. I’ve dealt with the sickly kind before.” 

He picked up a dagger and tucked it into his jacket neatly. 

“Do you have an address?” 

He hadn’t expected any less when he saw the home in which Maria lived. His run down hole of a house didn’t make a dent in the beautiful manor. She lived like a true aristocrat, so why would she look outside her kind for someone like him? 

Brushing off those questioning thoughts, Kaito knocked the door. He was greeted by a nervous looking butler, with an equally nervous looking maid stood in the wings.

“Where is she?” He asked, keeping the edge in his voice clear cut.

“Well, Mr Hunter, we were told to wait until the Head of the House came back before-”

“Where is she?” He repeated, his voice an angry growl this time. 

The maid gave in quicker than the butler.

“She’s up in her quarters, the last room to the right on the hallway upstairs.”

He wasted no time in ascending the stairs, headed straight for the room. His head was spinning, his heart pounding in his chest. The closer he got, the more he could sense her presence. 

Finally, he stopped outside her door. Once he collected himself, he raised his fist and rapped gently.

“Please just go away!” Her voice was so weak, it hurt to hear it.

“Maria.” He tried to keep his voice level and calm.

“Kaito, please, it’s not safe.” He could hear her choking back a sob. 

“Maria, let me in.” Kaito refused to walk away from this, not now. He wouldn’t have any other man, especially a hunter, placing their hands on her. 

“If I do, I might not be able to hold back.” 

The words stopped him in his tracks. Beneath all of those years of anger, of pure hatred that burned through his veins, there was fear. A fear that was also strong, a fear that fuelled his rage. No, no. He wouldn’t let himself feel that fear, not for her.

“Let me in.” He repeated firmly. 

There was silence.

“Please.” His voice softened.

After another few tense moments, there was a click. The door slowly opened. Maria had never looked more tortured and ill. Her face was drained of all possible colour, her eyes stained red and puffed with tears. He could see teeth marks all up her arms from where she’d tried desperately to take her own blood repeatedly, to the point where she’d ripped through whole sections of flesh. 

She stood inside this dark bedroom, her body frail and skinny against the light from outside the room. He noticed her squinting, and realised this was where she had been for all this time. Maria trembled and quickly stepped backwards, tripped over her feet and fell to the floor. 

Quickly, Kaito stepped into the room and closed the door. Without hesitation, he rushed to Maria’s side. She slapped his hand away and tried to crawl from him.

“Please Kaito, please. I don’t want to do this.” Tears trickled down her cheeks.

He reached out and grabbed her hand.

“Maria. What’s going on?” 

She opened her mouth to reply, but instead gasped and clutched her throat with her free hand. The thirst was driving her insane. 

“Maria?”

“Another one.”

“What?”

“Inside me,” she choked out, “there’s another heart beating.”


	4. She Saw The Storm

She saw the storm in his eyes and felt afraid.

She was not afraid of him, that was the thing. She was afraid of losing him, even though he never was hers to begin with. He’d clammed up completely, his eyes on her stomach. Her eyes wandered helplessly to his neck and she clamped her fangs into her bottom lip. 

“Is that why you’re so thirsty?” He finally muttered. 

She nodded, casting her eyes downward.

“And if you feed they might-”

“No, they will know.” She whispered, her eyes stinging with more tears.

He went silent again. It was clear to her that he was unsure of what to say or what to do. She was, unfortunately, in the same position as him. Though she didn’t look up, she could hear the jacket shift from his shoulders and fall to the floor. 

“Maria.”

She reluctantly lifted her head to see his arm held out, his wrist exposed in the dark room and his sleeve rolled up to his elbow. 

“You can’t go on like this, you need to feed.” 

The thought of feeding from the one who hated vampires the way Kaito did could have bowled her over if she wasn’t so ravenous. It took so much of her to resist for as long as she did, but the sight of his wrist sent the beast inside wild. She grabbed him by his arm, pulling him closer, and held his wrist to her mouth. 

“Kaito…” She wanted to feed from his neck, really. She wanted to hear his pulse, to feel his hair against her cheek. 

“I can’t…” He trailed off and she understood. 

It would be easier to hide and easier to forget at the wrist. This hurt her somewhat, but she respected his boundaries. With a deep sigh, Maria sunk her fangs into his wrist and began to drink. She felt him flinch ever so slightly and closed her eyes. No, she didn’t want to know of his expression right now.

His blood was delicious, it was unlike anything she’d tasted. It coursed through her veins as she drank, cooling her head and nourishing her tired body. Her grip tightened, she didn’t realise just how thirsty she was. The experience was intense, flooding her to the core. 

Maria heard Kaito grunt softly and slowed down as much as she could, not wanting to weaken him significantly or bring him harm. 

“I’m sorry…” He whispered to her in a gentle voice.

She finally opened her eyes and withdrew her fangs with care, licking any stray blood away.

“Why are you sorry?” Softly, she placed a kiss on the bite mark. 

With his free hand, he took her chin and turned her head to face him.

“I’ll never stop hating vampires until the day I die, Maria. Yet…I won’t, no, I can’t hate you. I made you a victim by doing what I did to you.” 

She frowned at him.

“You make it sound dirty, like I didn’t have a say in those times with you.” 

Her hand came to rest on his cheek.

“I wanted you just as much as you wanted me, I came to you knowing the risks from the start, even before the matching, and I came for you still knowing those risks.”

He flushed a little at the implication of her words, and she blushed at her own boldness too. 

“We were just two lonely people, right? Two lonely people that…needed something.” Her voice quietened towards the end of her sentence. 

Putting a distance between them like that, it was difficult and cruel for her. However, it was all she could do. There was no way that they could be together, there was no way that Kaito could live with a vampire as his wife. She guessed that much, his reputation came first. But despite that, despite it all, she was falling in love.

“If I arrest you like I was intended to, they’ll surely find out about your…pregnancy.” The word was foreign on his tongue. 

“No, that won’t do. I’ll just have to run away to my villa.”

“Other hunters may come after you if I say you escaped me.”

“Then don’t say I escaped. Say I made a deal, and I’ll write Kaien a letter.”

He paused.

“What about the thirst? How will you deal with that?”

She didn’t know why she said it, but she did. With a struggling smile, Maria gazed up into Kaito’s eyes.

“Well, maybe you’d change your mind and run away with me.” 


	5. Their Secret Arrangement

Their arrangement was entirely secret. 

Maria had covered her tracks well, claiming that the stress of marriage was too much in her letter and she was starving herself out of shame until finally she was liberated by Kaito. 

She lived quietly in the villa, her family didn’t visit her which was for the best. Her proposition haunted his dreams for many nights, the fantasy she had of him running away with her vivid in his mind. Perhaps he was a coward for turning her down, but he offered her something in its place. 

Kaito protected her the best he could. It gave any potential visitors a reason to stay away, because she was being officially watched by a hunter until ‘it was safe’ for her. While they thought she was being supplied with blood tablets, she was being fed by Kaito himself instead. The arrangement was ideal. 

This continued for a few years, neither desiring to bring up that now distant idea of being together. They were comfortable enough, even though Kaito knew that deep down it’d never be the life Maria truly wanted. He did feel shame at times, seeing her alone in a big and lonely house with a swollen stomach and hungry eyes. However, it was the way it had to be.

The only question they both had many arguments over was the fate of the child. How would Maria, or Kaito for that matter, explain something like that away? Maria wanted to keep the child no matter what, but Kaito wasn’t so sure. The truth was, he didn’t know if he was ready to be a father, especially not to a half vampire child.

It seemed that his behaviour was drastically changing, too. He had jitters, inescapable nightmares, mood swings and panic attacks. At times, everything became too much to bear. But then he’d end up in Maria’s embrace, and everything would slow to a stop. 

“Hey, are you listening?” 

Kaito jumped a little.

“Yeah, sorry, I’m just a bit tired from work.” 

Zero frowned at his friend, not buying him for one minute.

“How much longer do you plan on lying to me?” 

Kaito glowered at the silver haired vampire.

“I’m a liar now?”

“You know that no matter how hard you scrub at your skin, I can smell her on you. She always had that smell of lavenders, you know.” 

Kaito paled slightly.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Zero smiled slightly, which riled Kaito’s temper somewhat. 

“What?!” 

The infuriating vampire looked away from him.

“When I found out that Yuuki was a vampire…my world was turned upside down.” 

“You’re a vampire too, though.”

“Exactly.” His lilac eyes seemed far off as he recalled his memories.

“I thought it’d be the worst thing, I never wanted her to suffer the way I did. All I ever thought was that vampires were monsters that had no redemption, no soul. Even if that meant I was a monster, too.”

Kaito watched his friend quietly as he spoke.

“The truth is, though, her becoming a vampire was her becoming complete with herself. Even as this ‘beast’ she was radiant, she still had the smell of sunshine and this…smile, this beautiful smile that I needed to protect at all costs.”

He met Kaito’s gaze.

“Then, there was Ai. I may not be her biological father, but she’ll never go without as long as I live. Her and Yuuki both, they may be vampires…but they are the most human beings I’ve met, and I love them.”

Kaito’s brows furrowed together, he turned his face away.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“You love her, don’t you? It scares you, it goes against absolutely everything you believe in, but you can’t stop these feelings - even if you were to rip your heart from your chest.” 

Love? That concept always seemed so foreign to him. Yet, when he looked at Maria’s slumbering form, listened to the sound of her breathing, he had never felt more at home.

“She’s…”

“Hmm?”

“She’s my home.”

Though he didn’t see it, he knew Zero had a peaceful smile on his face.

“I think that’s where you’d better go, then.” 

Kaito bit his lip thoughtfully. After a few moments, he got up and ran. It didn’t matter who saw him or how he looked, it didn’t matter how fast he moved to the point where his legs were starting to ache. He wanted to go home. He wanted to go to her. 

When he slammed open the door of the villa, though, he was greeted by the overwhelming stench of blood. His heart was hammering in his chest by this point, and the scent was so intense that he was near collapse. 

“Maria!” He called out breathlessly, staggering forward as quickly as he could.

A loud, pain filled cry responded to his call and he ran to her room. 

There, writhing in agony on the bed, was Maria. Her nightgown was completely drenched in blood, spattering across the blood sheets. It was her own blood, and way too much of it. The yowling from her mouth was unlike anything he’d ever heard, and for the first time Kaito felt true fear.

Quickly, he rushed to her side and grabbed her hand.

“Maria, what’s going on? Maria!” 

She stared up at him, blinking through hot tears.

“The baby…the baby!” 

“It’s coming? Now? I’ll have to go get help!”

“NO!” She screamed out, gripping his hand tighter.

“Maria, it’s okay. We’re going to bring this child up together, as a family. I promise you.”

Her pained expression twisted in confusion.

“Maria, I love you.” 

The beautiful vampire that had stolen his heart choked back a sob.

“Really?”

“Really, Maria. I love you.”

She almost smiled, but the pain wracked through her body again and she screamed out.

“I’ll get help!”

“No, it’s too late now! It’s too late…” 

The grip on his hand weakened, making his heart lurch.

“Maria, it’s going to be okay, just stay with me.”

Kaito didn’t know much to anything about delivering babies, but he was suddenly thrust into action. A towel, hot water and pair of scissors - that’s what he needed. Kaito rolled up his sleeves and got to work.

A single cry, that’s all it took.

Bundled in a towel, held in Kaito’s arms, was his daughter. She wriggled a little, taking in her surroundings the only way she could. This helpless infant was half his - and he couldn’t love her more.

With tears in his eyes, he felt himself grinning.

“Maria, our baby, she’s so beautiful. You have to see her.” 

He looked up and his whole body froze. The colour drained from his face. Maria lay slack on the bed, soaked in a pool of her own blood. The life was being drained from her, her eyes becoming dull. 

“Bring her…” Maria managed to whisper, trying to lift her arms. 

Kaito came to her side once more and kneeled beside her, handing her the baby carefully. Weakly, Maria smiled and placed a kiss on the baby’s head. 

“Maria-”

“I love you.”

A tear slipped down his cheek. He’d never expected himself to cry, not since that fateful day so many years ago. 

“You love me?”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.” 

Her eyes met his. He leaned forward and kissed her as deeply as he could manage, feeling his heart pumping furiously in his chest. He loved her, he loved her so much. He loved her shy eyes and her honest voice. He loved her tender embrace and her gentle laugh. He loved her.

Their lips parted and she smiled.

“Take care of her, Kaito. Please.”

Kaito opened his eyes in horror as he saw cracks run up her face. Within seconds that seemed like hours, she was gone in a bed of dust. 

He couldn’t move. He couldn’t even scream. His whole body went numb and burned with emotion all at the same time. 

A small, gurgled cry brought him to whatever senses he had in that moment and he took the baby into his arms. When he looked at her, he burst into tears. He cried unlike he’d ever had in his life. 

She had her eyes.


End file.
